also bearing gifts. these are called helen's kitchens cook. they have a little sea salt up top on a chocolate chip cookie. ooh, these are good. what do you got for me? >> kelly is willie. rowdy crowd at the blackfinn. >> i heard that. i think some of the people were out and came to the show. people are throwing glasses in the bar. should be a wild "morning joe" and delicious one. "morning joe" starts right now. >> like so many american families, our families weren't asking for much. they didn't begrudge anyone else's success or care that others had much more than they did. in fact, they admired it. we learned about dignity and decency, that how hard you work,

matters more than how much you make, helping others means getting ahead yourself. we learned about honesty and integrity. that the truth matters. that you don't take shortcuts or play by your own set of rules. those are the values that barack and i and so many of you are trying to pass on our to our own children. that's who we are are. and standing before you four years ago, i knew i didn't want any of that to change if barack became president. well, today, after so many struggles and triumphs that have tested my husband in so many ways that i could have imagined, i have seen firsthand that being president doesn't change who you are, it reveals who you are.

>> good morning. it is wednesday, september 5th. day two of the democratic national convention and we're live again at the blackfinn salon in charlotte, north carolina where there is a line around the corner. with us on set msnbc and "time" magazine senior political mark halperin, national affairs editor for "new york" magazine and msnbc political analyst john heilemann and msnbc political analyst and former chairman of the republican national committee, michael steele. we bumped in with michele obama, a portion of michele obama's speech, what did you think of it? >> it was a great speech, it really was. so many personal anecdotes you could visualize. we were talking last week about how ann romney said a lot of great things about mitt romney but never gave you the visuals. john said it best. who in america are in that convention hall -- or in that convention hall watching the speech didn't get the image of a loving father struck with ms,

seeing his two children sat the top of the stairs and fighting and struggling to get up those stairs to hug his children at the end of the day or fighting and struggling to get out of bad to go to work to give them a slice of the american dream. it was an absolutely fantastic speech. and the great line, absolutely loved the line, that being president doesn't change who you are, it reveals who you are. >> very personal, very revealing but it also might have accomplished something in terms of touching on some key areas that might have needed some work, not that the president, you would think, had a problem with the women's vote. >> right. >> and this speech, of course, would be very appealing to a lot of women out there. we'll start this morning with a new poll by abc news and "the washington post" that finds that the message at the republican national convention may have had an impact on the president's campaign for re-election. among likely voters favorable opinions of the president has gone down three percentage points while his unfavorable

marks are up 2%. meanwhile mitt romney's favoribility is on the rise but his numbers are still under water, 48 to 43. the most surprising information from the poll deals with women voters. it appears the republicans appeal to women last week has helped close the gender gap between mitt romney and president obama. president obama is suddenly upside down when it comes to his favoribility among women, 50 to 46%. the most recent nbc/"wall street journal" poll showed president obama with a 15-point lead among women over mitt romney. i'm surprised by those numbers. >> that's a head scratcher. >> i don't know who's not surprised by these numbers. mark halperin, abc news/"washington post" poll, usually not an outliar poll. very interesting. those numbers don't add up. i cannot imagine the president being upside down among women. >> even with great polls, one in every ten is just bad and could be that.

comes right after the republican convention where there was a concerted effort between mrs. romney and dr. rice, secretary rice and a bunch of other women speakers. i don't suspect those numbers are right. it may be a narrower gap. >> john heilemann? i agree with that. there was a cbs/"new york times" poll about six months ago that had a similar weird there, had obama ahead with men and behind with women and everyone looked at it and said the numbers didn't make sense. i suspect that's the case in this case. >> i would agree. i generally don't look at polls on the heels of the convention because everyone has the pumped up juice from it. give me a week or two afterwards, both conventions set until and people will give you a fair assessment of the two candidates and their messages coming out of the convention. >> willie, the speech last night, in there is any problem with president obama and women, i don't think there is, that speech last night took care of

any questions -- >> and beyond just speaking to women, she made a great case for the american dream and the way she and her husband have lived it, achieved it. answer romney tried to do the same thing a week ago. i think to some people watching it might be a little more convincing coming from mr. and mrs. obama. that was the theme of the night, the san antonio mayor julien castro, gave a good speech where he talked about his family, mother, grandmother getting him to that point. they holding mops so he could hold the microphone. the theme of the night achieving the american dream. reaching back and helping people out. >> real digs from the romneys not being able to borrow money from your parents that seemed to resonate in different speeches. >> the general theme of the night, pursuing the american dream and in america everything is possible, you heard about hard work and dedication and middle-class values, that's so important because right now, what the republicans are trying to do, mark halperin, is wage a

campaign where they say barack obama is a welfare president, the food stamps president. he wants to reward people for not working. he wants to reward people for not getting married. he wants to reward people for ab bore rent behavior. and last night, i thought michele obama was more convincing than i've seen either obama over the past four or five years in connecting their story to my family's story. i think that happened all over america. >> if we aren't just here for fun, if there is a possibility you could use your convention program to give yourself a better chance to win the election, i don't think there's any doubt that the first lady's speech was as productive for their mission as possible, particularly on this issue of the middle class. how does the president try to trump the bad economy that he's presided over? one big way is to say, for growing the country, for growing the middle class, my policies will be better because i get you and understand you. just as when bill clinton in his

re-elect, literally talked about a bridge to the 21st century to try to use that metaphor. what they tried to do last night and will in the next two nights if you care about the middle class you have to stay the course, go forward with this president rather than some said explicitly, some said implicitly, the other guy. >> let's listen more to the first lady and get john and willie and everybody else in. >> when people ask me whether being in the white house has changed my husband, i can honestly say that when it comes to his character and his convictions and his heart, barack obama is still the same man i fell in love with all those years ago. yeah. he's the same man that started his career by turning down high-paying jobs and instead working in struggling neighborhoods where a steel plant had shut down, fighting to rebuild those communities and

get folks back to work, because for barack, success isn't about how much money you make, it's about the difference you make in people's lives. for barack, these issues aren't political, they're personal. barack knows what it means when a family struggles, he knows what it means to want something more for your kids and grandkids. barack knows the american dream because he's lived it. and he wants everyone in this country, everyone, to have the same opportunity, no matter who we are or where we're from or what we look like or who we love. and he believes that when you've worked hard and done well, and

walked through that doorway of opportunity, you do not slam it shut behind you. no, you reach back and you give other folks the same chances that helped you succeed. >> the first lady closed on an emotional note, bringing the crowd to its feet, as she described what matters the most. >> at the end of the day, my most important title is still mom-in-chief. if i truly want to leave a better world for my daughters, and for all of our sons and daughters, if we want to give all of our children a foundation for their dreams, and opportunities worthy of their promise, if we want to give them that sense of limitless possibility, that belief that here in america, there is always something better out there, if

you're willing to work for it, then we must work like never before. and we must once again come together and stand together for the man we can trust to keep moving this great country forward. my husband, our president, barack obama. thank you. god bless you. god bless america. >> i don't think she could have done a lot better than that. >> no. that was -- that was a grand slam. >> i think it's the -- if you look back over, there were really good speeches given last week. i think it's the best speech given at any convention at this point. the most extraordinary is how far she has traveled. if you think back to four years ago and what a huge high stakes operation her speech was. she had been care rick ka toured as an angry black woman, embody

grief vance, her public image was in real trouble when she went into the convention? denver, gave an incredible performance at that convention and that began her ascent to now she's the woman, person in american politics with the best approval ratings of any person in either party. if you watch her last night, she has really become an incredible political performer. there are not like professional politicians who are as good as the pure level ofs they beyannism as she is. >> nailing lines beautifully. >> the pauses just purely performance, she is really quite extraordinary. >> one of the things that has been so distressing for me, somebody that's watched these for decades, it used to be that you would have people get on the big stage whether you're talking ate jesse jackson or ted kennedy or ronald reagan, used to be you would see people get up on the big stage, and not go, okay, reading the teleprompter to

their left, to the right. last week, other than condi rice, with all due respect to all my friends down there, some gave a good speech, you never suspended belief. you never felt like, they're talking to me. just performance wise, as pat buchanan said, togging about political -- talking about political athletes. that last night, that was somebody that you were listening to her. you weren't going she is performing and she is reading her lines and she's hitting her pauses well and hitting her punches. she's just talking to you. i agree with john, one of the better performances i have seen in a long time. >> even chris christie last week, who we all agree is a pretty good political performer, you could see he was reading his lines off the script. particularly in that last clip we played where she started talking about her daughters, welling up in her eyes you can argue about how president obama wants to get your kids to the next step, how he wants to get you a better life, but if you have children, it's hard to --

it's hard to take issue with the message at the end, which is we love our children so much we want to make this country better for them. there's the president watching from the white house last night with his daughters. >> michael, a great -- i think we all agree, a great performance by the first lady. >> yeah. i thought she just hit it out of the park. it was the best speech, period. i thought that she did a phenomenonal job of laying out the argument for her hus bund's second term. we'll talk about the underlying policies she inferred or referenced in her speech and that's what the debate is going to be about and should be about. she looked great. i loved the dress. >> yeah. >> put it out there. >> she looked really glamorous. >> the thing came together very nicely. she walked off with confidence, looked america in the eye and spoke from the heart about her family but most importantly spoke to, you know, from the heart about our president and that i think was a very

distinguishing mark from what we saw last week. >> and you know, she did something so critical and so important, again, that by connecting barack obama and michele obama to the american dream. there has been over the past several months, a lot made of speech that he gave talking about how you didn't build it and undercut -- and i've said here on the show when i heard the speech, i was stunned. >> yeah. >> and i said, this guy just doesn't get it. he just doesn't understand, you know, what so many other small business owners understand. michele obama last night, talking about her dad, talking about her mom, talking about her struggles, talking about a working-class family, fighting like hell to get their two kids into college, to have a better life. >> yeah. >> man f that's not the american dream i don't know what is. >> well, brilliantly executed and certainly doesn't hurt that

they were able to weave how their stories matched the american dream that they are trying to build and matches the policies that they've been fighting for, whether you agree with them or not, everything there fit into place because it was genuine and authentic and connected in a real way as opposed to trying to string together some concepts. >> can we just talk about --e i never heard a a lot about her dad. what a hero. the guy waking up in pain and struggling to get out of bed, struggling to go to work, leave singing a song -- >> what she didn't mention, they went to princeton, these kids. >> incredible. >> and took out student loans to get there. their father paid a little bit. he worked as hard as he could to pay the small part of just an outrageously expensive college career. but they lived, their parents fought to put their children on their shoulders and look what happened. >> and then she looked to go to work after college.

into ye >> yeah. >> like a lot of us. i don't know. i think it connected a lot with modern women out there today. >> willie and i didn't want to go to work after college. we had this elaborate ponzi scheme that involved the lottery. didn't work out for us. >> you know what, seriously, i was sure -- i was sure we could get the turkish government. >> before we go to break, that is the other speaker that really shined last night, there were several, but julien castro, the san antonio mayor, seen as a rising star in the party, and he was the first latino to deliver the keynote address at the democratic national convention. after being introduced by his twin brother who's running for congress, mayor castro fueled an enthusiastic crowd with a speech laced with humor and digs at the republican candidate for president. >> mitt romney, quite simply, doesn't get it. a few months ago, he visited a

university in ohio and gave students there a little entrepreneurial advice. start a business, he said. but how? borrow money if you have to, from your parents, he told them. gee, why didn't i think of that? i don't think governor romney meant any harm. i think he's a good guy. he just has no idea how good he's had it. when it comes to getting the middle class back to work, mitt romney says no. when it comes to respecting women's rights, mitt romney says no. when it comes to letting people love who they love and marry who they want to marry, mitt romney says no. when it comes to expanding access to good health care, mitt romney says -- >> no --

>> actually, actually -- actually -- actually mitt romney said yes, and now he says -- >> no. >> governor romney has undergone an extreme make-over and it ain't pretty. so here's what we're going to say mitt romney in noech november. we're going to say -- >> no. >> mark halperin, what did you think? >> very strong and kind of an introduction of what ann richards did as the keynoter against george bush. baus barb lines that will get attention but talking the story about the nominee. talk in tampa too many of the marquis speakers didn't talk

much about mitt romney and last night you heard even the speakers like the keynoter and former governor ted strickland, even those that went hard after mitt romney, had positive things to say about the president. >> i thought he went after mitt romney but did it with a smile on his face and ann richards attacks were deeply personal. these were some funny punch lines. >> think of 2008 and barack obama and 2004 and 2008, even his detractors would say, what a great political aspect his smile was. julian castro has the same thing. when he would do the smile, it would soften the blow the way that ann richards seemed sometimes very cutting and accosting. there was nothing cutting and accostic about him. for a guy as young as he is, in his early, mid 30s, who's really had no national exposure before. >> yeah. >> his speech was noted a good performance wise but for a

speech that's your first big time on the national stage never having done this before, he was very, very strong and i think he will be someone this will do a lot for both barack obama as mark said, but also does a lot for julian castro going forward. >> don't underestimate how big that will play with hispanic viewers. >> talking to announcers overnight on telemundo -- >> bigger than marco rubio's speech? >> probably bigger because democrats tend to get bigger coverage in that media. >> i thought it was good. you know, i'm a little biased, more partial to rubio, i thought if i compared the two, i did last night, rubio came out with the stronger presentation and message, but i think to your point, john, for someone just walking out on the stage for the first time. >> yeah. >> it was a knockout punch. it was very well delivered. right amount of humor, right amount of digs and to mark's point it was a very positive message that will play very strongly in hispanic community that reinforces the message from this administration that we're going to partner together and

we've got the leadership team, see, that, you know, that will help us do that. i think it was very good overall. >> willie, heck of a debut for a guy in his 30s. can i say a kid in his 30s if i'm much older. >> he's my age. >> i call you the kid. >> the kid. >> the kid. >> i said it earlier, but i think that the part of the speech where he talked about his grandmother being a maid, cleaning other people's houses and here i am standing before the country introducing you to the president of the united states, that's a pretty remarkable message. >> that is. >> that speaks to the american dream and i will say, perhaps, his greatest asset is his little 3-year-old daughter was a super star on the cutaways and become an internet celebrity flipping her hair around. it was draets. >> we're just getting started live from the blackfinn salon in charlotte, north carolina. >> mika does that too. when she's at baseball games and they catch her behind home plate. >> remember when we embarrassed chris. absolutely funny. >> the mayor is going to be here. >> mayor julian castro will be

here joining us and bring in white house senior adviser valerie jarrett here to join us. >> all right. >> yes. >> tom brokaw, arianna huffington. up next, jim vandehei with the top stories from the politico playbook. but first, let's send it up to bill karins in new york for a check on the forecast, bill? >> good morning to you, mika. it's a very humid morning for everyone in the eastern half of the country. there's some fog to deal with too. and definitely some rain, especially up in new england. we've gotten drenched throughout the state of maine overnight and watching numerous showers and storms from the boston corridor and approaching new york city, philadelphia, baltimore and d.c. definitely an umbrella day. you step outside you know it's going to pour at some portion of the day. still have breaks of sun. not going to rain all day long. when the sun comes out it will be warm. temperatures in the mid 80s with high humidity and thunderstorms rolling through areas along the border of iowa and illinois. looks like chicago that's going to stay to your west, that's good. no air travel problems out of

chicago this morning. but later today, numerous thunderstorms from st. louis to chicago all the way through the southeast. notice how hot we are in dallas, 102 today. yesterday you were 103. and as far as charlotte goes, we had rainfall and thunderstorms last night. i think we're going to do it again this afternoon into the evening. the big forecast is for thursday night. the president will be trying to speak outdoors at bank of america stadium. they're trying to say they're going to do it rain or shine. the biggest fear any lightning with the thunderstorms. but at 10:30 at night hopefully all that should be dying off and should be able to go on schedule. we'll wait and see and i'll update that forecast tomorrow. the soup is on in pork cinew yo. you're watching "morning joe" brewed by starbucks. welcome aboard!

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i've worked on a lot of fun movies, but my favorite job was having a boss who gave the order to take out bin laden and who's cool with all of us getting gay married. so thank you, invisible man in the chair for that. and for giving my friends access to affordable health insurance and doubling funding for the pell grant. >> that was kal pen. he worked in the obama white house before heading back to hollywood. welcome back to the blackfinn salon in charlotte, north carolina. look at the line outside, people waiting to get in. i happen to know a guy if you want to get in. >> i met the fire marshall last night in the hall. >> what did he say about today's crowd?

>> no nonsense, draws the line firm. >> joining us now, politico playbook, executive editor, mr. jim vandehei. >> how are you? >> america's favorite uninvited guest mike barnicle here as well. >> hung over and hurting the way she describes himself. >> not booked on the show this morning but nice to have you here anyway, mike. >> let's talk about tonight's speech look ahead a little bit to bill clinton. it's, perhaps, the favorite story of the political press, the clintons versus the obamas. bill clinton subverting president obama so hillary, her star can shine a little brighter. what do we look for tonight and why is the "usa today" calling it the clinton gamble? what is the gamble? >> i don't think there is a gamble. what drama used to exist is largely subsided. the only drama right now is when does bill clinton get his speech in. that's always the drama. no doubt he's going to make a powerful case for obama but also a powerful indictment of mitt romney and republican theology.

the crowd loves the guy, he's a great performer. last time i checked he kind of likes crowds and talking. he'll embrace the moment. drama between the clintons and obamas which was real in his book, i don't thing it's as big and palpable as a couple years ago. >> clinton brings some advantages. what are the disadvantages to having bill clinton take the stage for the president? >> i agree with jim. i don't see very many. it will be interesting seeto see how far after 11 he goes given the stage, and the text, which has not been handed in yet, i think he's going to love it because he doesn't get to do this very often. he has given long speeches at past democratic speeches, i bet it's delivered longer than as written. >> what i would like bill clinton on truth serum for his take on last night's not the performance but language. a lot of stuff you hear in the speeches that i think is a lot

more than bill clinton would prescribe. his formula for winning nabl elections was moving to the center, not the base, the 6% that had not made up their mind. the language on gay marriage, on abortion, on business, i wonder if that is what he would request democrats be talking about if you want to win the middle. >> i was going to ask about that. for me, it still has that taste or flavor of the -- that clinton wing of the party, such as it is or whatever amount that's left, how do they then wrap their heads around, you know, this particular movement through the democratic platform to embrace such hot topics like gay marriage? how do they reconcile that with clinton at the top still. >> that clinton wing of the party has shrunk, the wing of the party that would be authentically pro business. there was a point this presidency after the 2010 elections, where president obama seemed to be saying you know what i think i'm going to move more towards the middle, brought

in former clinton hands, changed rhetoric. he scrapped that in about three months and made the calculation i have to go back to the basics, back to the base and i think that tension always exists. it's one of the big reasons that republicans have a huge financial advantage for the final ten weeks of this race. business has been turned off by the rhetoric and reality of this white house and what they're doing is taking their money and many are millionaires and billionaires pumping it into outside groups and giving republicans the final edge that none of us anticipated. >> the democrats found a man who could go toe to toe with the giants and cowboys in prime time. >> interview former clinton at halftime of the giants and cowboys game. president clinton has always reminded me in a sense of the old joe dimaggio story, hall of fame yankee outfielder, once when asked by someone, a reporter, why he played so hard all the time and sometimes

meaningless games, joe dimaggio said, because there might be someone out there who has never seen me play before. that's the way bill clinton always affects me when i see him. he's always on game. he's always right there. thinking perhaps, 6% that you alluded to, someone might be out there that has never heard him before. >> it's a smart move, doing an interview and airing it during the football game. i can tell you what most of my friends will choose. it's not bill clinton it's that football game and he knows there's a lot of independent voters he can connect with, that happened to fit the pro file of somebody who would be watching the nfl football game. >> and unlike other candidates he has the capacity during a halftime interview to put down -- he can sum it up in phrases that you could write on the back of an envelope and remember. one, two, three, here's what this deal is all about in one formula. >> and brian williams has bill clinton's halftime of the game tonight. don't have to switch off. jim vandehei, thanks so much.

we'll talk to you. >> coming up highlights from the first place baltimore yor roll rolls. i say again, the first place baltimore orioles. the yankees in the middle of a boston-esque september collapse. highlights from the pennant race ahead in sports. we'll be right back to charlotte. at usaa, we believe honor is not exclusive to the military, and commitment is not limited to one's military oath. the same set of values that drive our nation's military are the ones we used to build usaa bank. with our award winning apps that allow you to transfer funds, pay bills or manage your finances anywhere, anytime. so that wherever your duty takes you, usaa bank goes with you.

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so let's talk about coverage. based on this chart, who would you choose ? wow. you guys take a minute. verizon, hands down. i'm going to show you guys another chart. pretty obvious. i don't think color matters. pretty obvious. what's pretty obvious about it ? that verizon has the coverage. verizon. verizon. we're going to go to another chart. it doesn't really matter how you present it. it doesn't matter how you present it. verizon. more 4g lte coverage than all other networks combined.

beltway -- >> battle. >> baltimore, though, stretching the beltway a little. >> welcome back to the blackfinn salon, joe and mika outside. >> good to see you. >> good people as they wait in line. they'll get in here eventually. let's do a little sports now. >> good to see you. >> let's. >> oh, we've got -- >> we're going to be talking about america's sport, football. the nfl season comes a day early this year because of what we're doing here, avoiding a conflict with the president's convention speech tomorrow night. the giants and cowboys open the season tonight instead of thursday. marks the first time in more than 60 years an nfl game has

been played on a wednesday. last time it happened, september 22nd, 1948. >> i was there. >> when the rams beat the lions 44-7. 33-year-old mike barnicle covered that game. rescheduling doesn't mean there won't be nfl action inside a stadium thursday night. president obama will give his dnc speech from bank of america stadium, home of the panthers, weather pending. 40% chance of rain. >> there's other rumors out there. >> some are talking maybe they can't fill the price. >> are you talking that way or other people? >> i'm hearing the chatter. >> you have your ear to the ground. >> the chatter of the little people. >> they have the arena available. calling it weather. >> watch the giants and cowboys as we mentioned earlier, 8:30 eastern time on nbc. halftime with president clinton. i think we've run out of time here. >> go on. >> get to baseball. >> reminds me of the story of my first giants game as a child, went to the meadowlands as a

child. >> start with the birds. >> the yankees fine. we'll do baseball. the yankees starting to feel what it was like to be a member of the boston red sox last year. >> keep saying that all you want, buddy. >> complete and utter collapse. yankees led the al east on july 18th, a month and a half ago, by ten games and now, they're tied. the yankees entered play a game up in the orioles a division lead. win to over the surging rays. a good start for the ranks at the trop -- yanks at the trop, canoe, 2-0 lead in the first inning, rays come back, down a run in the third, evan longoria, two-run home run, puts the rays up 3-2. things get only worse from there to the yankees. runner on for chris dickerson, run up on a check swing. home umpire sticks around, going to argue the call and rung by the home plate umpire. little frustration boiling up.

joe girardi gets his money's worth, nose to nose, gets thrown out. takes a little dirt on the plate on the way out. shades of lou piniella and billy martin. yankees lose 5-2 in tampa. with a win the orioles could tie for first place and good news for them, they were playing up in toronto where they won by a football score of 12-0. wondering how it happened, this collapse, take a look at the standings, the records, the o's, rays and yankees had on july 18th when yankees were up ten games, this is their record since, rays just a game and a half out in the division. another one against the yankeess. you start and go around. >> [ inaudible ] buck, dan duquette executive of the year in the american league, yankees, call brady little. maybe they can help out. reprise last september. you as a yankee fan you have to

admit when a club collapses like this and seems to roll over, part of you, part of you, says you know, you can't lose fast enough. >> we don't have the red sox self-loathing. we're going to win this. >> willie, wouldn't it be something if the yankees didn't even get a wild card birth. wouldn't that be something. >> it's possible. >> wouldn't it be great? other teams are playing well, though. >> they're playing great. >> go birds. >> i believe derek jeter and the yankees are just building a beautiful narrative for their little engine that could victory coming up. up next harold ford jr. joins us for mika's must-read opinion pages. keep it on "morning joe" live from blackfinn salon. >> look at him meeting the voters. [ female announcer ] the power to become a better investor has gone mobile.

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this is the pursuit of perfection. ♪ ♪ when they fight they fight ♪ and when they go home at night they sing ♪ ♪ i love you baby welcome back to "morning joe." at 46 past the hour. it is time now for the must-read opinion pages. we have msnbc political analyst and visiting professor at nyu and former democratic congressman harold ford jr. joining the conversation.

>> good morning. >> you have a piece in the journ journal. >> tell us about it. >> a question was asked when president obama is re-elected how does he work with congress and what would you recommend? >> i recommend embracing simpson-bowles, moratorium on new regulation and three, a massive public/private infrastructure bank to make investments across the country to increase and improve our infrastructure. >> in the "wall street journal." we also have as part of our must reads from "the new york times" maureen dowd and writes, obama doesn't like to share the stage with other politicians or campaign for house democrats, but now because of his own naivete ensue larrity and arrogance, he needs bill clinton to rev up the disillusioned faithful and donors and more independents and white working class men. bill, haled by some as the first black president, was expand barry's narrative to reach back and link obama's rolling tenure wars, debt and partisan fencing to clinton's restful stretch of

prosperity. do you remember it to be restful? it's not a bromance like romney and paul ryan. it's a transaction. obama needs his democratic predecessor to reassure jittery voters that the future can look like the past, with a lower deficit, plenty of jobs and the two parties talking. bill will have the capital to ensure that the past will look like the future with hillary as obama's successor. is there a transaction here the way she does? >> i think there's a little transaction. i just took note of the fact she put in that, you know, the first black president which i thought was a little bit of insult to the president there. look, bill clinton is coming out to do what bill clinton does best and that is to talk to the base of his party. president obama knows he needs them. there is -- there's enthusiasm gap that exists and it's genuine

and you heard last night in many of the speeches reminding them we've got to go knock on the doors, organize, we've got to come together. i mean it was the punch, almost the punch line in every speech because they know their base, irrespective of the folks in the hall, out in the country are not necessarily moving at that same level and energy at this point. you can see what's happening on the republican side. >> and maureen dowd talking about how bill clinton was able to work with republicans even under the worse of all circumstances and leads into "the washington post" editorial. >> a second obama term, this is the paper's editorial, we agree that republican bullheadedness, particularly in the doctrinaire opposition to revenue increases has been a major ob tacle to progress. if mr. obama wins a crucial question will be whether to nudge republicans to moderate their positions or whether they decide that nominee mitt romney was not ideological enough. but mr. obama wasn't faultless. even when conservative republicans such as senator tom

coburn of oklahoma signaled the willingness to deal, the president failed to show the leadership that might have made something happen. most fundamentally any solution to the nation's fiscal crisis is going to require compromise. no matter who is in charge, taxes will have to go up and entitlements scaled back. the math doesn't work any other way. is this, do you think, the fundamental question that still needs to be asked of this president. >> the question is, harold ford, how are the next four years different from the last four years? and the white house, as i've said, is very quick to point at the republicans and say it was all their fault. republicans will do the same thing with the white house. democratic white house. but he is going to be president for four more years will he be able to reach across the aisles like bill clinton did even though he's dealing with people who want him out of office? >> he's going to have to and congress will have to work with him. one thing i wrote this piece, meaning you to deal with deficit

reduction first, even if you want to do new spending, i a-listnd last night, i agreed michele obama and the young mayor from san antonio spoke to the base in a serious job. clinton's job will be to, woo back independents and white working class men in this country. what country works, joe you're spot on, the president will have to make spending cuts first before the country will embrace and republicans will embrace new spending which is why i've said for a long time, had the president embraced simpson-bowles early on or something similar, we would be in a very different race right now in the country and i think would be more in tune and aligned with the president than today. >> we have to go to break, quickly john. >> the notion that a lot of republicans argue that barack obama if he wins re-election will govern further from the left is the furthest thing from true. i don't say that because out of some idealistic sense. he's going to be about his legacy in the seconds term.

call that self-interest, whatever you want to call it. what he wants at the end is to look back and say i accomplished a great democratic priority with my first term with health care and the second term i got the grand bargain done. he's going to come back and say i don't need the left anymore. i'm ready to move to the center, put the grand bargain back on the table. >> welfare reform. >> the legacy piece is going to be huge if he's re-elected and have to have a new staff focusing on legacy and going to have to call some of these people who are across the street in the hall elected officials, democrats, republicans and senators, and actually wade in with them and get something. >> he doesn't like to do that at all. >> that's -- >> doesn't like to do that at all. doesn't like them to visit. >> until he starts thinking what is my presidency going to be remembered for, then he picks up the phone. >> two of the dynamic speechers speechers -- speakers last night, mayor julian castro and

mayor anthony foxx. we'll be here live at the blackfinn salon for the rest of the coverage of the democratic national convention located on east trade street. stop by if you're in the area. come by and say hi. we're back in just a moment.

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welcome back to the blackfinn salon. mika and i -- >> look at this shirt. >> this is beautiful marissa. >> you look so good. >> what grade are you in? >> fourth grade. >> and marissa, are you supposed to be going to school today? >> yep. >> are you going to go to school today? >> um. >> you can say it. >> no. >> no. >> ask her what time you woke up this morning. >> what time did you wake up for your field trip? >> 3:30. >> that hurts. >> you made this yourself. >> yep. >> how did you do it? >> we first we -- >> look at barneycle and halperin. >> we drew it and put the paper under the shirt and traced it. >> that is so cool. >> fantastic, marissa. >> we're so glad you're here and you do not have to go to school today. >> no school. >> come here cutie. good job. you're a good girl. thank you so much. >> we'll be right back to the

blackfinn salon in charlotte, senior adviser to the president, valerie jarrett, and al hunt, keep it live on "morning joe" live from charlotte. i'm so g

lad you called. thank you. we're not in london, are we? no. why? apparently my debit card is. what? i know. don't worry, we have cancelled your old card.

great. thank you. in addition to us monitoring your accounts for unusual activity, you could also set up free account alerts. okay. [ female announcer ] at wells fargo we're working around the clock to help protect your money and financial information. here's your temporary card. welcome back. how was london? [ female announcer ] wells fargo. together we'll go far. when people ask me whether being in the white house has changed my husband, i can

honestly say that when it comes to his character and his convictions and his heart, barack obama is still the same man i fell in love with all those years ago. yeah. he's the same man who started his career by turning down high-paying jobs and instead working in struggling neighborhoods where a steel plant had shut down, fighting to rebuild those communities and get folks back to work, because for barack, success isn't about how much money you make, it's about the difference you make in people's lives. >> welcome back to "morning joe." live at the blackfinn salon in charlotte, north carolina. michael steele still with us. joining us on set, look at this, nbc news's tom brokaw, tom hunt and senior white house adviser valerie jarrett with us.

good to have you. willie, we probably should start with valerie. >> i think that would be wise. >> on michele obama's speech, she did well, didn't she? >> i think she did very well. how proud of her? was she great? >> look at that. why doesn't she co-host with us. discussing our performance today, valerie and specific your mom. >> my mom is here. >> your mom is at the bar. >> absolutely. >> absolutely. >> hi, barbara. >> is valerie [ inaudible ] are you proud of your daughter? >> am i. >> do you always sit at the bar this hour of the morning? >> don't answer that question. >> maybe, no. let's get to the news with the president and their two daughters watching on tv from the treaty room of the white house. first lady michele obama talked about her husband's character and conviction and while she didn't mention mitt romney by name, the references were clear, as she aimed to contrast the president's background with that of his republican challenger.

>> for barack, these issues aren't political. they're personal. because barack knows what it means when a family struggles, he knows what it means to want something more for your kids and grandkids. barack knows the american dream because he's lived it. and he wants everyone in this country, everyone, to have the same opportunity, no matter who we are or where we're from or what we look like or who we love. and he believes that when you've worked hard and done well, and walked through that doorway of opportunity you do not slam it shut behind you. no, you reach back and you give other folks the same chances that helped you succeed.

>> the first lady closed on an emotional note bringing the crowd to its feet as she described what matters the most. >> at the end of the day, my most important title is still mom in chief. if i truly want to leave a better world for my daughters, and for all of our sons and daughters, if we want to give all of our children a foundation for their dreams, an opportunities worthy of their promise, if we want to give them that sense of limitless possibility, that belief that here in america, there is always something better out there, if you're willing to work for it, then we must work like never before. and we must once again come together and stand together for the man we can trust to keep

moving this great country forward, my husband, our president, barack obama. thank you. god bless you. god bless america. >> valerie, we've all said this morning it was an incredibly powerful speech, particularly that piece at the end. i see you getting tears in your eyes as you watch it again. what went into that speech, what did it mean so much for the first lady? >> she put her heart and soul in it. i tear up just hearing her repeat it. we heard it last night. i like the fact that i saw michael steele nodding his head. it's a speech that resonated with everyone. i think particularly moms, mika, because you think about your children and you want a better world for them. that is what it was. it was deeply personal. she sees her husband obviously from a unique perspective, knows him better than anyone, his values, what motivates him and she wanted to tell that story to the american people. >> she did. >> there have been a lot of reports she sort of crafted this speech.

>> absolutely. >> herself with help from speech writers, give us the back story. >> michele is always one who prepares so she's been thinking about it for a while, thinking about it over the course of the last four years. i think she had an opportunity to put it all down on a piece of paper and she did agonize over every word because she wanted it to be truthful and honest and speak from the heart and she was hoping it would resonate with everyone and i think it did. >> what did you think? >> i thought it was an exceptional piece of old-fashioned political oratory. what conventions used to be about having those kind of moments. what's striking to me, both here and in tampa the new face of american politics. you have an african-american woman, went to ivy league schools, coming back, talking about her african-american husband, the president of the united states, introduced by a hispanic mayor from san antonio. last week, we had the mormon wife of a mormon nominee who made a very effective speech

before that convention and mark rubio made an extraordinary speech in tampa last week, another member of the hispanic community. so al and i have been doing this a long time. the face of american political conventions in the past would be guys our age and all white. that's changed profoundly. and i think that's something to celebrate frankly in the course of this last month. >> we had 41-year-old marco rubio a week ago last night, 37-year-old julian castro of san antonio. a different time in politics. >> it is. tom's absolutely right. the face as you mentioned are so different. i've covered 21 of these and i would say that her speech last night was one of easily the seven or eight best i've heard among anyone. it's that good. i didn't expect it. i didn't expect it to be that good. not only was the message right for her and for their cause, but contrast the romneys was so dramatic and so subtle and so --

it was done with grace and the tone and tenor, this was not an angry woman up there talking, just enormously effective. i thought the other speeches last night were good too. michael, i think the first day of a convention probably is the least important, conventions build, the final day matter. this first day was in such contrast to tampa where there was a listless group of republicans who weren't excited. i saw people in the hall last night even before michele obama or the mayor were up, excited. this enthusiasm gap may not be be what we thought it was. >> it may not be. i thought it was number of commenner tos about the fact that the room kind of vibrated which was i think unexpected given the fact that a lot of people thought there was this huge gap. the reality of it is, the hall is one thing, the country is something else. i think this speech helped translate for the help in many ways, that message that we're going to work together. as i said before, the emphasis and the first lady's speech and

many other speeches, was get out there, we got to fight, this is going to be a battle, we got to get together and organize. they know they need to energize their troops. republicans are ready. they may not be in love with mitt romney, but they're ready to fight for fill in the blank, the country, you know, the constitution, there are things driving them. michele last night really sort of centered that focus around the president. it's not spread out. it's not whatever you want it to be. the focus was on president obama and that's a different kind of energy than one that's dissipated across a number of issues or ideologies within a particular party. >> she touched on key themes that would appeal to a lot of people, even those who are hurting today in america. and was able to connect them with her story and that of her husband's and al, was it that connection that was made so effectively? in some ways you've covered how many of these, 21? >> going to make you repeat it.

mine that's a big -- i mean that's a big statement to say. >> i'm the kid. tom is the veteran. >> the connection was there and as i said a moment ago, it was the contrast. >> yeah. >> talking about college loans that were larger than mortgage payments. guess what? the romneys didn't have that problem. it was talking about working with steel workers. and again, if this is a speech that could have been given in a very fiercely partisan angry way. the message may have been partisan but certainly the presentation is not. that's what made it so darn effective, i think. >> valerie, republicans have been asking for the last week or so, are you better off than four years ago. they argue the country is not better off. what's the case for the president? why is this country better than four years ago and continue to get better four years later. >> of course we're better off. think where we were four years ago. in the last six months of the bush administration, we lost 4 million jobs, 750,000 jobs when

the president was sworn in. the automobile industry was on the brink of collapse. now we've had 29 consecutive months of private sector job growth, 4.5 million jobs. not only is the automobile industry on the brij of collapse -- brink of collapse, gm, chrysler, ford competing globally. gm number one in the world. we were in a war in iraq. the president committed to end the war. we've done that. our troops are coming home. osama bin laden was plotting against us each and every day. we don't have to worry about him anymore. if you look at how our country has moved forward, we are certainly moving in the right direction, but willie, there are certainly americans sitting around their breakfast table right now trying to figure out how to make ends meet, so our work is not done. we still have a long way to go. >> it's not just about the numbers. valerie, it's really about the perception and you're trailing significantly in [ inaudible ]. that's a big issue going into the campaign, is it not? >> this is what this convention is all about. it gives us an opportunity to

really crystallize for the american people this stark contrast and it's their choice, what direction we want to go forward. i think the president in the course of this week, you're going to hear from so many speakers who talk about their life story and how this agenda moves their life forward, embodies the american dream, and he then on thursday has a chance to give us his road map for the future. so at the end of the week i think we will have told a very effective story which should not just galvanize our base but your country. >> we have a story, are blacks better off than four years ago. by any indices the answer is no. the unemployment gap is wider with african-americans than it was before barack obama was elected, wealth, income disparity is greater today than four years ago. and i'm sure that the answer would be it's been tough times and blacks disproportionately suffer. i don't have any doubt the african-american vote will turn out for barack obama. but what he has to do on thursday is not just say, the other guy's policies are a rerun

and they're bad, but how life is going to be better for these people. >> i agree. >> and so far, even as good as michele obama was last night, so far, that message hasn't been forthcoming yet. >> i think what you hear on thursday for the president is how life is going to be better for all people. african-americans were suffering disproportionately long before this most recent crisis. it's part of why the president is investing in education. that's the long-term success, how every generation has moved up the ladder and he knows in order to have a strong middle class, to provide that ladder to the middle class, education is the linchpin and that's why he's also made college more affordable, doubling pell grants, making sure interest rates didn't go up on student loans. all of these strategies look at the long-term perspective. we can't just look for another bubble. it's going to take us a long time to dig out of this hole and education is the foundation. innovation, entrepreneurship, making sure that small, medium and large businesses have the kind of environment in our country where they can thrive

and grow. that requires investment. so it's an entire package that the president will talk about on thursday. it will be a very clear road map. he has never been at a loss for words. i think it will be effective. >> i don't know any presidential nominee who's been at a loss for words. >> we read a must read in a previous segment which touched on the narrative that the president does not reach out to republicans and that part of the problem with the republicans is on him, is not -- it can't just be put on them, he cannot come to compromise with them and a lot of examples brought up. will he look at that as an area where there's room to improve if re-elected. >> mika, you and vi had this conversation many times in the past sometimes on this show. the republicans made a concerted effort, i'm sure michael steele would attest to this, from day one, to just try to oppose everything he's done. he has reached out. he will continue to reach out. that's part of who he is and i think it's part of the values that the first lady described last night. of course we're going to always

look for ways to work with the republicans but we're also going to galvanize the american people to put pressure on their elected representatives because i think if you talk to the american people if you were to poll them right this minute and say do you want your elected reptsdstives -- representatives to come to the table and work with the president they would say yes. we're hoping this election will send the message to the republicans and congress, get to work. work with the president. >> there have been those who may have, you know, stood in the doorway, but let's also acknowledge that the president has not been, you know, on the other side of that doorway extending his hand to someone like a senator coburn and others who are conservatives, who have actually gone to the table and sat down. i think to mika's point, in a second term f that happens, this president is going to have to show that he is willing to set aside all of that and at least, if nothing else, make that frontal effort to show the american people, i'm trying, they're not. that i think -- there was a lot of back and forth and we can

have that debate but the reality is, i think, you know, that water splashes on everyone and both sides at this point which is part of the frustration of the country, is to see our leadership so far apart when the crises that we face in our homes and in our communities like the black community, is so close and personal to us. >> you know, michael, i'll tell you a quick story. when the president was first elected to the senate, senator lugar invited him on a trip to russia. and i can remember he called me and said i can't believe senator lugar is inviting know go to russia and learn about loose nukes. where's senator lugar now? he lost. the republican party keeps punishing their members who do reach out and who do work together and so i think there has to be a wake-up call to say, get back together, have an inclusive effort, do the business of our country. we have a lot of problems in this country. serious problems. all of them solvable if people work together. >> harold ford is in "the wall street journal" writing about sim sons bowles and i'm hearing

more and more on both sides of the aisle the need to embrace simpson-bowles and revive it. is the president prepared to do that either in the speech this week or before the end of the term? >> the president laid out a framework which is very similar to simpson-bowles. the problem with getting simpson-bowles moving forward is that the republicans signed a pledge committing that they wouldn't add a single penny of revenue. there isn't an economist that we know on any side of the political spectrum that thinks that we can bring our house in order without revenue, so, of course, the framework of simpson-bowles makes a lot of sense and if the republicans would be willing to embrace that, we could come to the table and get it done. >> why wouldn't you just put it out there and say, be you know, step up or not. >> it's been out there. and -- >> but he's not embraced itp. >> he laid out a framework which is very similar to simps simpson-bowl simpson-bowles. >> i want a speech where he says this commission i put together is doing and he has not done that.

doesn't matter if the republicans say in their caucus we're not going to support the revenue. >> you think they would? >> yeah. >> i think members -- >> that's encouraging. >> i think there are members in the caucus who want to get to the table to talk. >> that's encouraging. >> when the president doesn't embrace his commission that sends a signal. that's part of the problem. >> some republicans have. tom coburn, voting for it, three senate republicans who voted for it. >> know who didn't vote for it. >> paul ryan. >> that was a decisive vote. no question of that. and i do think the president has moved some, but he hasn't embraced simpson-bowles. >> i'll tell you, al, the republicans want to come to the table and talk about simpson-bowles, the president is ready to do that. absolutely. >> doesn't the president have some responsibility as the commander in chief to lead that effort rather than follow the republicans. >> if we could get the republicans to say anything that the president supports they're willing to come and talk about of course he does. as you will see both on thursday and throughout the rest of this campaign, getting our fiscal house in order is a definite

priority of the president. >> the big question, the theme of this entire campaign is jobs, getting people back to work, through all the noise and the side issues, that's what this is essentially about. if you could distill it down for people watching at home looking for a job, have been without a job for more than a year, what is the basic difference for that person between voting for president obama and voting for mitt romney? why would president obama in the short term get them a job quicker than mitt romney would? >> because all mitt romney has said we heard it at his convention is he believes if we continue to have tax cuts for the very wealthy, that somehow that is going to trickle down and help the people looking for a job. we tried that. it didn't work. there's no evidence that philosophy works. the president believes on the contrary, we have to build the middle class. we have to provide those ladders up into the middle class. that's education, that's work force training, that's making sure that we invest in our community colleges so that so many people who have been out of work can be trained for the jobs of the future. not the jobs of yesterday. it means we have to invest in

infrastructure. that's an easy way to create jobs. the president a year ago proposed the american jobs act. that would have provided the resources that we need to jump start. we would have created 1.7 million jobs and the republicans wouldn't embrace it. there are many simple ways to get jobs going that requires government to invest. the long-term health of our country in terms of job creation, willie, rests with the private sector. what government has to do is create and foster an environment where they want to invest and grow and that's infrastructure, education, that's innovation, research and development. there are many ways with a modest investment that the government could unleash that entrepreneurial snirts you believe the president will have better luck in the second term achieving those goals than the first term? >> i believe he will continue the progress he's made. we talked about 49.5 million jobs created. we will certainly continue to move in that direction. but it requires investment. you can't just walk away and say, cut taxes for the very wealthy and somehow it's going to miraculously trickle down.

willie, that doesn't work. >> valerie jarrett, thank you very much. >> my pleasure. >> someone's proud. are you proud. >> i am proud. >> thank you. >> thank you, valerie. >> keynote speaker julian castro, mayor of san antonio. and michael foxx is here. live from the blackfinn salon. humans -- even when we cross our t's and dot our i's, we still run into problems. namely, other humans. which is why, at liberty mutual insurance, auto policies come with new car replacement and accident forgiveness if you qualify.

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mitt romney, quite simply, doesn't get it. a few months ago, he visited a university in ohio and gave students there a little entrepreneurial advice. start a business, he said.

but how? borrow money if you have to from your parents, he told them. gee, why didn't i think of that? i don't think governor romney meant any harm. i think he's a good guy. he just has no idea how good he's had it. >> welcome back to "morning joe." here with us now, at the blackfinn salon, two stars of last night's democratic national convention, the mayor of san antonio, texas, julian castro and the mayor of charlotte, north carolina, anthony foxx. great to have you both. >> glad to be with you. >> congratulations to you both. this is great week. the speech was wonderful. >> thank you very much. >> it received really well and

you were touching on some themes that i think were digs at the romney campaign, but also talking about what really matters to people and what's affecting the middle class in america and those people that need a chance. >> you know, first of all, i'm a lot happier man, relieved today than i was yesterday right now. >> relieved? >> i am definitely. but, you know, what i wanted to do is just point out that the united states has always been the land of opportunity and put my family's story in that context and point out that president obama has been investing in the types of opportunities that we need to invest in today so that we have that tomorrow for our next generation and why that matters to the middle class. really spell out the clear choice that we have an have a little bit of fun with it, do it in the right tone, keep it positive. >> what were you hoping hopefully -- you were nervous before. you're relieved after. what were you hoping at best you would accomplish? it was a success but what was

the message? >> to point out the clear choice that this country has between a president as i said in the speech who wants to make investments in education, in infrastructure, in medicare and social security, and all those things that led to opportunity in our country, and you have governor romney who's on the other side of that. hopefully it did that. >> harold? >> mayor, good morning. mayor foxx, good morning. >> good morning. >> mayor foxx and i have a great connection. his lovely wife and i graduated law school together. i say hello to her. your referendum, trying to raise a small tax to ensure that children get a pre-k education, ensure all kids do, first of all congratulations on that. >> thank you. >> where does that stand? >> it's on the ballot in november. one-eighth of one cent. for the average household in san antonio, it's $7.81. i've been forthright with folks. tax has three letters but oft

oftentimes it's a four-letter wo word. when we're talking about an investment? 24,000 -- in 24,0004-year-olds getting a great start in education i'm asking folks to look at the merits of the proposal. i'm confident folks will support it in. polling it's doing pretty well. i'm glad about that. >> thank you. >> good luck with it. >> mr. mayor, how is the president going to do in north carolina? it's been one of the battleground states in the early stages, looks like it's shifting for the romney side? >> i think north carolina is going to be very competitive this fall. we're basically tied right now. the president has had the troops on the ground in north carolina since 2008. he's been working very hard to register voters and the convention is going to be a huge mobilization tool for the campaign. frankly, i think north carolina is going to be right down to the wire. in 2008, prognosticators said we couldn't win north carolina. the president won for the first time in 32 years. i think he's going to win north carolina again. >> but there's been -- there has

been a shift -- [ applause ] >> has there not ban shift in the state from a political and cultural point of view as a result of the president's stand on gay marriage, for example? >> i think people are voting on lots of things when they vote for a president. social issues are not the top of the list. i think the economics will be at the top of the list, comparing the perspectives of the two candidates is going to be at the top of the list, and when people are comparing the president not to the all mighty but to his opponent, i think they're going to choose the president because he's done such a good job of bringing this state back. >> are you at all worried that the convention is taking place in the time warner cable center which is the home of the bobcats, and the -- >> it was cool last night for the first time in a while. >> i looked in -- i was going to ask, i'm a big fan of paul silas and fan of michael's, i was going to ask if you are worried

if there's leftover karma from the season that will have some effect on the democrats? >> this is the beginning of the transition. we're transitioning into winners now. so we got the president coming here, he's going to win, an then we're going to have the bobcats winning this year. we're looking forward to that. >> i can see why you're so successful in charlotte. >> you know, both mayors on this, tom and i were talking earlier, tom and i both covered i think the first convention we covered was theodore roosevelt's convention, but the difference, at least to my eye, in diversity in the crowds in tampa and the crowds here in charlotte, are striking. i think at least they're striking to me and perhaps striking to many people watching it on television. your reaction to that? >> you want to start? >> of course, as the host mayor, please. >> i think there was, frankly, some window dressing last week. i mean you look at the stage and then you look at the crowd last week, it was very different.

when you look at the democratic party, it is truly a big tent. you have people from all different walks of life representing the democratic party and it's one of the great tapestries of american democracy. we're a little noisy, but our party is one in which everyone has a voice, everyone has a vote, and zealously protect both of those things. >> yeah. no, you know, of course i can speak for our democratic convention, that it does reflect the diversity of america, both in terms of the crowd and the folks who are getting up there and presenting the message and that's a wonderful thing as you all were speaking of. i do agree, you know, for instance, in the hispanic community you saw senator rubio and a couple of others last week in tampa, overall that's a great thing, but the challenge is not for the republican party is not the personalities, the challenge is the policies. and that's where they're going to run into problems. >> let's talk about policies at a city level. there have been a lot, charlotte's. as mayors you have to work quite

a lot with local business leaders in order to get things done within your city, in order to keep people employed to grow the city. do you think this president has done enough, received an enormous number of complaints, he's anti-business, doesn't work well with the business community in the country. do you grade him on that. >> i think he's done a spectacular job working with the business community. he's going to have a couple ceos i believe tonight that are going to speaks to the issue of how well, he's worked with the business community. this is someone who, as i said yesterday, you know, one of the things i said was that we believe that you can't be pro business unless you're pro education, the brain power is the new currency of success in the 21st century global economy. he's making the right investments so america can be competitive in the 21st century global economy. that's great for business. >> this president understands that the private sector creates most of the jobs. i've seen him working with business leaders and i've also seen him engage in things like

reducing small business tax cuts 18 times over the last three years and doing lots of things, including stabilizing our financial system, to help the business community grow, as well as stabilizing the auto industry. he's done a great job. it's just that we've got to get the message out this week. >> can i -- i was going to ask, if i could, mika, about the diversity question which i think everyone's impressed with what we're seeing on the stage and to a lesser degree in tampa what you were seeing in the audience, but nonetheless to the credit of that party, very prominent hispanics and african-americans who were speaking as well, but a big issue going into this campaign are going to be white males. governor romney is way out in front in that category. speaker gingrich said the other day, that's a gender gap that no one wants to talk about on the obama side. how do you get the white males to come back for president obama? >> well, i think, you know, one of the beauties of this convention is that we're talking about the values that all americans share, so when you're talking about hard work, being

rewa rewarded, the fact that there's a pathway to the middle class, that speaks to all americans. the common immigrant story that i pointed out last night, i think that, you know, someone who's been here five years, a citizen now, as well as someone who is a white male that was born in the united states, has grown up here, and also wants to live in a country where hard work is rewarded and there's that pathway, that's appealing across the board and, you know, i'm betting, although, of course, nobody has seen the remarks the president is going to make, i'm betting that the president is going to speak to that on thursday night. >> just to follow up. you have worked with business leaders republicans and democrats, what piece of advice when president obama is re-elected would you have for the way you would handle winning business support, the way you've won business support in the banking community here, what can this president do differently? i don't disagree with anything you said. mike barnicle is right, a lot of criticism out there from the

business community towards this president? >> you know, my experience in san antonio it has to be hands on. engaging the business community. and we've done that in san antonio and i know the president has done that as well with his jobs council and so forth on a larger scale nationally. >> and i would only add that i think there's been a misperception of what this president really confronted. he confronted essentially an 80-year flood with the economy when he walked into office and there's a lot of folks in the business community who have disagreements about how she should have handled it. in my opinion the president handled it as best as any human being could have. once this election is over, a re-set button gets pushed and the business community will come along and start getting things done again. >> mayor foxx and mayor castro, thank you very much. good to have you on the show. still ahead, arianna huffington, richard trumka [ inaudible ] james hoffa. we'll be right back. thank you, gentlemen.

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meteorologist bill karins. quick weather update for everyone on this wednesday

morning. gloomy scene in new york city. humidity way, way up and we are watching the chance for heavy rain and downpours during the day today. thankfully with the low clouds and rain in new england, no airport delays as of yet. i would some throughout the afternoon. you can notice the rain crossing much of massachusetts heading into connecticut and looks like another batch will head through the hudson valley. lot of the big cities, new york, philly, boston, d.c., looks like only hit and miss showers this morning. a better chance of storms later on this afternoon. we're also watching some rain in central illinois, trying to make its way through the rockford area and approaching the suburbs of chicago, we'll watch that heading through central illinois today and chicago, on and off tropical downpours during the afternoon. of course all eyes are on charlotte. we have a chance of more thunderstorms later today and then tomorrow, a 40% chance of showers and storms. hopefully those will be ending by the time the president speaks at approximately 10:30 east coast time. coming up next on "morning joe," live back to charlotte, we'll have the president of the

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welcome back to "morning joe." here with us now the president of the a fshgs lshfl-ci fshgs f and international breertshood of teamsters james hoffa. great to see you guys. >> going good. >> the press like to build up there's a friction between you guys and the democratic party because picking charlotte, because picking the bank of america arena, any truth to that? >> well, originally there was,

but we're by that. we're here and we're going to have a great convention. having a great convention. that was then, this is now. we had original reservations but once we're here it's a great facility and we'll have a great convention and be successful and elect barack obama. >> i'll ask you the same thing, richard. >> you know, joe, there's too many important things for us to be worrying about the venue right now. it's done, over, behind us. we've got jobs to create, we've got an economy to create that will work for everybody. time for us to move forward and that's what we're doing. >> there was a time when the teamsters, obviously, weren't just a one-party union. what can unions do, republicans do, to start moving towards a time where the support is a bit more diversified? i would guess that's better for you guys and better for the republicans? >> the problem with the republican party, they veer to the right. i mean if you see their platform, national right to work, this was the most shrill

convention last week against unions, pounding their chest how they beat up workers, how they did this and how they took away collective bargaining rights they thought that was a positive. it was so negative it all turned people off. this party is not reaching out. they can't reach out. especially when they're talking about national right to work, project labor agreements. they're just going far and far to the right. like the john burk society like in 1964. they're just going off the edge. >> i will tell you what, i can -- i ask you how the two sides can come together. boy, that kind of talk really helps a lot. i feel like i embracing you right now. >> you got to reach out. nobody is reaching out. there's nobody there. that's the problem. and if you hear what they're talking about, their teams, it's unbelievably right wing anti-labor. >> let me ask you both, i mean obviously there's a gap in the kinds of voters that the president can attract and the kinds of voters governor romney is attracting and a lot of attention is being paid to white males in which governor romney,

according to all the polls, has a considerable lead. my guess is a lot are members of your unions of one kind or another. why is that? >> well, let me -- i'll answer that. in the last election, president obama lost white males, noneducated white males but among union educated males we won by about 20%. that's almost a 40% gap us a we're able to talk to them give the facts, the economics of everything and when they see the facts in front of them they make the right decision for themselves. unfortunately, they don't get all that stuff. we're not able to talk to nonunion workers until this time. this time we will be able to talk to nonunion workers and be reaching out to them, giving them the education, giving them the facts that they want, addressing the issues that they want and i think we'll have a difference. >> what's your take on the fact that union membership is decreasing, it's not increasing, and in some states, specifically

wisconsin, being the most notable, when a governor, when a public official, takes on a union, the governor's popularity rises. what's your take on that? >> my take is that number one, we've lost 8 million jobs since the recession, since the bush recession. a lot of those jobs were union jobs. a lot of the trade jobs, all these bad trade agreements those jobs are going to mexico. all the good jobs are leaving the country. when you have a job that leaves it's not the hamburger flipping job it's the highly paid job with good health care and pension. that's why we're hurting. we're organizing day and night but we are down and part is because of the recession and because of trade deals and everything else. we've got to fight back and make sure we start building. but getting back to your question about the white union males. we're reaching out to them and i think the contrast between, you know, what romney is saying and what they're saying, going to vote for pocketbook. they're going to vote their pocket. >> when you talk about trade

deals, something terribly important to organize labor, china immediately comes to mind. of the two presidential candidates the one that has the tougher position, your position on china, is mitt romney. he's going to declare them a currency manipulator from day one. >> there's two things about that, al. one, the that president obama has enforced trade the trade laws like nobody else has before, no president before him has stepped up. and we won cases that they prosecuted and we put people back to work, second and third shift. when it comes to mitt romney, i really have trouble believing what he says, because he has -- we know this president stands up for us, he went to see buy in america real again. >> you don't think he's a china currency manipulator? >> he's doing the right things

to get this country back on track and that's why we support him. >> i really worry about the players' safety, untold because i haven't watched the game, i'm told that they really do lose control of the game, they don't have control like the regular refs. you're going to see careers ending because of the hard headedness of the league right now, because what we're talking about is really chump change in comparison -- >> thanks a lot, i appreciate you guys. willie, what's coming up next? about 20 bloody marys have been served already this morning. so we're off to a good start and it's not even 8:00 in the

morning. >> we'll have jean robinson next and also arianna huffington when we come back. ♪

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when it comes to the health of our families, barack refused to listen to all of those folks who told him to leave health reform for another day, another president. he didn't care whether it was the easy thing to do politically, no, that's not how he was raised. he cared that it was the right thing to do. he did it because he believes that here in america, our grandparents should be able to afford their medicine, our kids should be able to see a doctor when they're sick and no one in this country should ever go broke because of an accident or an illness. and he believes that women are more than capable of making our own choices about our bodies and our health care. that's what my husband stands for.

>> welcome back to "morning joe," live at the black fin saloon in charlotte, north carolina at the democratic national convention. joining us on set moderator of "meet the press," david gregory and political director and host of the daily rundown chuck todd and associate editor of the "washington post" and msnbc political analyst, eugene robinson. >> if they're successful here you'll be able to point to that speech and perhaps what the president has to say. they had a chance to reconnect with voters. if they can do that, i think that's a very powerful impact at

this convention. >> "the washington post" sinds that the message at the republican national convention may have had an impact on the president's campaign for re-electi re-election, favorable -- mitt romney's favorability is on the rise, but his numbers are still on the rise, 48% to 42%. the most surprising information from the poll deals with women voters, it appears that republicans appealed to women last week has helped to close the gender gap between mitt romney and president obama. favorability among women is 46% to 41%. >> so that means the president has a higher favorability rating among men?

for that map to work, the president has to be doing better among men than women. i've been concerned about looking at any polls over these two weeks. we're not in the field until after both con investigations. that might be an outlier this is reputationally a very good poll. it just seemed odd. >> it would be typical if the bounce turned out to be a negative bounce, right? i mean that's just the way this campaign has gone. >> michelle obama, even if that were the case. >> michelle obama's speech, just amazing. >> i got to admit, i was thinking, you know, a short phrase occurred to me, michelle 2016. i mean here you -- it was a reminder that the clintons are not the only ultimate power

couple. this incredibly accomplished woman who gave just a tremendous speech. >> isn't that something how she reconnect her family with the american dream? >> her family, her story, her husband's story, with the american dream, without really hurling insults at the other side, basically saying we did it ourselves and our families were good people who wanted an education for their children and look where we are now and we understand the plight of the middle class, we understand what you're going through. and she set the stage for as she put it, being mom and chief, being an incredible wife and it was likable all around, i mean i can't imagine anyone who had something negative to say about that speech. >> you go back to 2004 and a lot of people disagreed with president bush over the war, they knew at that point there

were no weapons of mass destruction in iraq. he did what he stood for and he believed in certain things. i think the first lady last night was not only connecting voter who is his strengths, but casting aside political considerations, that's argument and some of it's sort of leer kl. but it gets to this point that likability matters here as well. people have turned away from the president as being sort of the transformative figure. >> the speech wasn't the mean republicans kept us from doing xyz, this is what we did. >> let's not remember, the 10:00 hour was soft, the 5:00, the 6:00, the 7:00 and the 8:00 was

hard. >> i think that's why michelle's speech look. positive, forward looking works. >> i think also, i hate to do this, but each convention had a wife speaking on behalf of her husband. it to me showed how poorly written ann romney's speech was. >> we're talking about michelle obama being a star and she was a star last night. >> beautifully written. >> last week we were talking about how ann romney said didn't connect. so much of ann romney's problem, where the lines that she was reading, she said mitt's this way, but she didn't tell the story. and that's not ann romney's fault, it's the speechwriter's fault. i talked about it a couple of hours ago, the story of her father, hurting, having ms, getting out of bed, every step

was painful but he made sure the kids heard him singing as he went off to work. and they stood at the top of the stairs waiting for him to come ho home. i mean there's probably michelle -- >> one of the really elegant things is that she talked about her parents, about the president's mother and about her kids and also about themselves. one of the challenges when you're running for re-election, is to retell your story that is new and fresh. she said a lot of stuff people didn't know about her father, but she reveals things about her husband. that speech when i read it, they put it out there and i thought, this is really an elegant speech, a lot of really great

imagery, but then she has to come out and give it. she told the story in a very calm, conversational speech. >> that's the way to start, calm and then rides. >> you're rooting for rain thursday because the democrats have two more nights that they had last night in their convention. it's really going to put the republican convention in a very weak light. this night comparatively to the first night of the republican convention. >> not even close in substance, enthusiasm across the board. >> we're going to show more of michelle obama's speech, but again, back to the republican campaign, they didn't give -- they didn't help her draw out anne romney, why mitt romney is great, why he's a good man, why he will mean something to you. and that sort of awkward line which i don't think was written,

where she just sort of screamed, i love you, women, is because i think she felt she wasn't hitting it. while michelle obama, she said i am woman and she said i am you women. >> i'm not prepared to say that you really know who had the greater impact yet. we can looking through the political prison. -- i think that ann romney had a tremendous impact. shefts new on the scene. mitt romney was relatively knew. i think talking about their marriage, talking about children, talking about children, talking about we have a real marriage. all of that was an intimate way to talk about their relationship and we just don't know yet what the impact was like. >> one of the biggest disappointments for the obama campaign for the past couple of years and certainly something that had to concern the campaign

itself is that it had taken on such a joyless sort o atmosphere, that the president himself looked joyness, a sort of grayness fell over him that sometimes fall over presidents who have lost connection or lost love for the job. and last night, i hate to be shallow, but that's who i am. from the colors to the stage, and by the way, this is what they've been sweating details over. i'm just going to say it, the democrats who put this together were so much better than the republicans who put tampa together. because it was a joyous occasion, especially the 10:00 hour. you were talking about the negativity before, guess what? like we said last week when clint eastwood stumbled on

stage. >> democrats were really surprised at the lack of message being driven in tampa and came in here determined to do it. as chuck said, the earlier speeches were tough. governor strickland of ohio was really tough. you look at michelle obama's speech, she talked about military families. >> did she mention afghanistan by the way? she mentioned it more than mitt romney. >> a military mom. >> and then they closed with a prayer not widely seen, but they closed with a prayer giving the benediction. so they have thought through this good cop bad cop thing very carefully. if they keep this up, it's not a partisan thing, it's a fact, we're all experienced reporters, tampa started slow, this started fast. >> duvall patrick had the house on fire. >> wasn't he great?

>> i think this idea that if people here and if even, you know, softly committed voters, those wavering obama supporters, if all of a sudden they could feel like, hey, we're part of something again, that's really what the president's got to do is rekindle that. >> let me go superficial here which is the production value. compare how it was so clear to me that the obama campaign had a heavy handed speech. they made sure that speech was part of the narrative of the night, it fit what michelle oba obama's speech was about when they were talking about personal narratives. you can tell, they didn't mess with chris christie, they did a poor job. >> we said it last week and a lot of people raised their eyebrows about there are going to be comparisons about mayor castro versus marco rubio because two young rising

hispanic stars, i'm sorry, i will say it again, the marco rubio speech was a missed opportunity. >> because it was a marco rubio speech. mayor castro, he talked a little bit about himself. he talked about his family. >> here's something in this convention, that will make us rethink, we have said for years, barack obama, he's not a natural politician, he doesn't really enjoy the political side of it. i think he enjoys politics, i think he's very competitive, i these he enjoys running for president, i think he's good at it. >> you mentioned duvall patrick, here's some of what he had to

say last night. >> and if we want to win elections in november and keep our country moving forward, if we want to urge the privilege to lead, my message is this, it's time for democrats to grow a backbone and stand up for what we believe. this is the president who delivered the security of affordable health care to every single american in every corner of this country after 90 years of trying. this is the president who brought osama bin laden to justice, who ended the war in iraq and is ending the war in afghanistan. this is the president who ended don't ask don't tell so that love of country, not love of another determines fitness for service, who made equal pay for equal work the law of the land. the list of accomplishments is

long, impressive and barely told and even more impressive when you consider that congressional republicans have made obstruction itself the centerpiece of their governing strategy, with a record like that and a vision that hopeful and power # i think we have a much deeper merge on the american level. that democrat last night had three speeches that were better than what the republicans put on the entire week.

i'm talking stylistically, the way they were delivered, even if i don't agree with them i'd logically, they had three speeches that were better than any speech delivered at the republican national convention. we always get a -- other than condi, condi's speech was amazing, but they all looked like they were reading the teleprompter. >> i kept thinking, is it me? but this convention seems well rolled out. you think about the clint eastwood thing, how stupid that was, how unbelievably huge that missed opportunity was. >> he's got the yellow behind him, julio castro had that bright yellow, just a sunny -- paul ryan was in front of the

drab gray, chris christie was in front of this blue thing that was moving -- like a 1968 star trek thing. you know what? it may offend people at home, but presentation matters, and mika, the democrats, i think at least through night -- >> he designs the sets and the colors on "morning joe" and has a sense of this stuff, it does matter, because visually it's what you're taking in, while you're listening to the words, while you're looking at the faces and while you're giving your message. >> i think what president biden has told people as the voters begin to -- it's that wavering obama support in 2008. they need some encouragement to come back to the president

again. and chuck's talked about it, and saying this change and we have got to be more -- they're trying to give people an actual bill of goods, this is what the president actually did. in the convention, they're pulling back from this idea, let's just make it a contrast and tear down governor romney. >> again, always said with a smile on his face. >> he had a great smile. >>s th that was night one, chuc todd, they're bringing out the big guns tonight, and then the big guns on thursday night. >> -- were there republicans delegates in tears when they were watching speeches? it was an interesting observation he was trying to make, there was a connection -- it's what made the floor feel like, i mean the delegates listen to every speech. >> you know what?

it's hard to say this on tv, people that are around mitt romney will say he won the nomination, we all knew it going in, we all knew it before we went there. in 2000, republicans went in there and we were ready to win and we were excited about w. and he was going to kick al gore out and we were going to get rid -- buzz we went into tampa they just weren't excited and it showed. >> there were a number of people who had to win over the crowd in the room. governor romney couldn't assume that the delegates were going to be for him. last night all the big speakers had them -- last night, as chuck said, they listened to every speech. >> no matter what else happens, they know bill clinton closes

tonight. >> bill clinton there, biden, where's w, where's cheney, a little awkward. >> watch elizabeth warren just set bank of america -- notice they didn't bring her into the stadium. >> but they'll do great tonight and rich lowry to point out. it's sort of subtle, but gene you saw tears last night. you saw that emotion and u you saw that connection and frankly you didn't see it in tampa. you saw a party that, yes it's determined and argued, but that emotion, that connection, that spark, you didn't see it like you saw it last night. >> and guess what, they had the stories to tell. ann romney had the stories to tell. mitt romney had the stories the tell. they just -- i don't think they were produced well.

>> yes. >> he was listening to the folks in our ear. we're running out of time. >> they're yelling go to break. are you listening to that? >> that's like elevator music time. >> i'm looking forward to tonight, you're talking about high level democrats, and he said what does the president have to do? i think bill clinton will help him out tonight. i think there's emphasis on bill clinton delivering and putting more description to fortify the republican republicans. they would rather watch the nfl on nbc. >> more fun to watch the audience loving bill clinton or bill clinton loving himself being on stage.

i'm serious. he's going to be like look at me, i'm the father bear. it's good, i love you. thank you, chuck. >> that's sunday morning, that's like sunday school. >> thanks a lot, chuck. >> we'll see you a few minutes on the daily rundown. a lot more still ahead live from sharl charlotte, arianna huffington is here. "morning joe" is back in a moment.

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♪ ain't that america ♪ you and me >> when your country is in a costly war with our soldiers sacrificing abroad and our nation is facing a debt crisis at home, being asked to pay your fair share isn't class warfare. it's patriotism! >> wow. >> there you go. >> i don't know if you know, but

actually the staging backstage caught on fire. >> it did? >> and there were about 12 conventioners, delegates, trapped, engulfed in flames and he tweeted with his left hand while coolly and calmly used the fire extinguisher. >> i think now the statute of limitation is over. we can stop making fun of him for tweeting. >> as long as he doesn't have a block party. >> joining us now live from the black fin saloon, the co-founder of the huffington post and editor-in-chief of the huffington post media group, arianna huffington. and former comptroller of the united states, david walker and national editor for "vanity

fair." jobs launched today. >> talking about the convention first, how are the democrats staging this compared to the republicans? >> they make the republicans in tampa look like amateur hour, it's just the energy, the engagement, michelle obama's speech, i looked through everything conservatives have written and i can't find a negative word which is pretty stunning, it's really the one moment of by partisanship is michelle obama's speech. of course now the question is going to be, how do they go from the personal to the political, that breach. even in michelle obama's speech, you realize that she talked about the soldiers who are coming home, and the man who lost his eyes in afghanistan and he would have given them 100 times over what he had down. to do what exactly.

why do we stay in the emotional generaliti generalities. the minute you get down to why are we still in afghanistan. even deval said he's ending the war in afghanistan, but he's not ending it any time soon. >> it was much more cohesive than in tampa. last night it built to the real climax with mrs. obama. i think the one thing she did was she personalized health care and wall street reform and saying this is coming out of the values of where he lives and he grew up. it's hard to say you would be worse off without me. but i think these things all come out of a consistent frame of mind that he needed to tackle

a tough -- >> the reality that 2% more people living in poverty during the obama years, the average student loan is $25,000, much more than when the obamas were in love and in debt. these are the stubborn facts that we have to address before the end of the convention. >> one of the issues that i'm most concerned about, and that's debt. >> you're going to be going on a $10 million a minute bus tour i believe starting september 7 and you tweeted that you hope president obama goes there on simpson bowls, what would you like him to say? >> i think he needs to do something bold, george w. bush 43 was a disaster on fiscal issues and frankly it hasn't

improved since then. he created simpson bowles. >> the president can't point at george w. bush anymore, can he? he owns this trillion dollar deficit. >> the truth is that george w. bush was the most fiscally irresponsibility president while he was in office, and it has not improved. we've got from $20.4 trillion in unfunded promises to $70.4 trillion. we have gone down again in competitiveness. there's only one country in the world that eethat's worse off a is greece. which every candidate, president

obama or mitt romney that can convince the people that they have the better way forward on those issues will win. >> but we're not going to hear democrats talk much about deficits and debt, are we? >> the message of austerity is now out on his democratic base. and that's why democrats think this is mostly a base mobilization election. even for undecided voters, the slim percentage that are undecided. he's going to force over a fiscal cliff, but he's going to very quickly turn to how do i get the nation's fiscal house -- >> you know, todd, a guy talking tonight, bill clinton bragged about balancing the budget, that

was as a new democrat, something that he took great pride in. i'm wondering this morning, are the obama managers r they holding their breath about what bill clinton -- are they excited about it? what's their attitude of the -- >> yes, they're holding their breath, they're crossing that their fingers and toes. they made a point saying they know that he didn't care because he's going to rock the house. and he will almost certainly rock the house because he's the most popular figure in the party, he's endured. it's a -- so i think it will be fascinating to watch tonight and i'm sure he'll be on his absolute best behavior. >> arianna, tell us about the jobs lunch. >> jobs are the big issue, everybody's talking about jobs in one way or another. but we don't believe that washington is going to do

anything about jobs in the foreseeable future. so what we're doing today and tom brokaw is moderating, is we're bringing people together, including will i am. to talk about what can the private sector do, what can individuals, foundations, not for profits, we can't stay on the sidelines and wait for something to happen. it's something we can actually apply to job creation and we're bringing over 100 start entrepreneurs to demonstrate that even during this time jobs are created, businesses are started, we just need to help them stay. >> arianna huffington, thank you so much, once again david walker, todd vernon. >> and the $10 million a day bus tour.

>> that's real money. >> on tomorrow's show, here in charlotte, kirsten gill brand, barney frank, jim clyburn and lawrence mcdonnell. we'll be back just in a moment. with the spark cash card from capital one, sven's home security gets the most rewards of any small business credit card! how does this thing work? oh, i like it! [ garth ] sven's small business earns 2% cash back on every purchase, every day! woo-hoo!!! so that's ten security gators, right? put them on my spark card! why settle for less? testing hot tar... great businesses deserve the most rewards! [ male announcer ] the spark business card from capital one. choose unlimited rewards with 2% cash back or double miles on every purchase, every day! what's in your wallet? here's your invoice.

welcome back to "morning joe," we're live in charlotte right now, mike barnicle and i at the msnbc experience, downstairs from the black fin saloon. so it's kind of the overflow crowd from the bar, but the real party is in here, isn't that right? you got a visit from mike barnicle, which i will say, when he walked in here it was like michael jackson going to tokyo. so if you're in charlotte and you want to come down, this is where msnbc has set up shop, we got a coffee bar, we got breakfast. we're watching your favorite shows and you get yourself a joe star borrow pin. >> mike, i'm afraid that we

didn't have budgets. >> i appreciate the mention. >> we're glad you guys are all here hanging out with us all week and getting you to the bar. >> it's upstairs. >> we'll be right back. we're sitting on a bunch of shale gas.

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you know, mika, they say, and we have all heard this before, you really never know when god's going to call you. >> you really don't. >> and that is especially the case if you're giving the benediction following bill clinton's speech. because it could be an hour, two hours, three hours. >> it could be an eternity, truly. >> it could be tonight. >> given his record. joining us now, rabbi who will give the benediction tonight at the democratic national convention. >> we do well with eternity by the way, that's straight up our alley. >> obvious there's some si symbolism here, where does it stand, as governor romney's argument that he would be better

for israel hasn't found any resonance even among american jews? >> i think it has. while it's true that the majority of jews still have democratic, i think probably a vast majority, there is a great deal of internal jewish debate about the position of the administration and what the republicans would do especially with the iran threat looming, which dominates the discussion in most jewish circles. >> and so are you here in part to send a signal? >> no, i am not, i send no signals, at least not, you know, horizontal signals, only vertical ones. my hope is really to offer a prayer, i think that's just the function of a rabbi, a rabbi ought not to be political, and should be viewed just as cardinal dolan speak and that was a nice bipartisan message.

i don't know that everybody will interpret it that way but i think they should. >> and to go to the point of following bill clinton, in all seriousness, are you going to watch bill clinton's speech? >> i will. i understand that the symbolism of that and this, i'm wondering about the symbolism of your having a rabbi in a saloon to start off with. >> you showed up. >> i came, i showed up, you're right. i think it will be interesting to hear what the president says, it won't obviously affect the benediction one way or the other, i trust. but it's nice, there are a series of clergy that are giving various invocations, benedictions, i think it's nice for republicans and democrats both to show this ek coup men kl sense that this is still in various shades a deeply religious country and religious figures taking part in national gathering which is first and foremost what conventions are seems to be appropriate and

good. >> we'll all be disappointed if you don't rip a joke off of bill clinton's remarks. >> no doubt about it. that reminds me of an old joke, a rabbi, a congressman and a former national security advisor walk into a bar, dot, dot, dot. >> you spoke briefly with mark about some differences within your community, and the larger jewish community, with regard to -- what sense do you get locally in los angeles from your community about the need for action, immediate or a long standing over a period of months. >> well, actually, i'm in a somewhat unique position, because about half of my congregation is iranian, so they have, real, i mean immediate experience having fled iran in

the 1980s, ely and following. their sense is for many that it is impossible to get any kind of genuine reaction out of iran, outside of an immediate military -- ahmadinejad call ed israel cancer. a having had cancer, i know what you do with cancer, you either cut it out or you -- unless there's an immediate threat, you won't get any serious response from iran. i can't tell you that's true, but that's at least the sense. >> youwow, incredible. thank you so much. >> thank you for coming into the bar this morning. >> you can go to the synagogue afterwards. >> that's a deal. mom: ready to go to work?

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the big piece of the

republican convention, are you better off? no. now the next stage of the scripted dance, journalists get in the face of prominent democrats and badger them to elicit a resounding yes? >> can you honestly say that people are better off today than they were four years ago? >> no, but that's not the question. >> david can you honestly say that the average american is better off than four years ago? >> here's what i can say, chris, i can say that we're in a better position than we were four years ago. >> i just want to remind you what was happening four years ago at this time. >> i want everyone to understand that we got into a terrible economic situation. >> here's what the american people understand, is getting ten sandwiches for $10.

here's what we the american people understand, angels exist. >> look at mika and joe just lounging on the beach, visit myrtle beach put together the sand sculpture of "morning joe." you two guys are busy it looks like. you got a rocket from mars. before we tell you what we learned, it's is -- it is the birthday of the heart and soul. kate setta, i can say without exaggeration our show would not get on the air every day, if it weren't for kate. >> everybody's eating cake before kate. >> let's talk about what we learned today.

>> unanimity, everybody, michelle obama rocked it last night. >> michael steele? >> i learned that it's kate's birthday and she's a very special lady. happy birthday, kate. >> what did you learn? >> i learned that chocolate chip cookies are always better with a little salt. >> i think when our producer is yelling in our ears stop, stop, stop, we are actually supposed to stop? >> mike barnicle? >> i got up at 5:00 a.m. to bake this cake for kate. >> i learned that being on the show is as much fun as watching the show. >> i learned that mike listened to ann, he got rid of those hideous socks, that he wears every day, the same socks every day. >> the democrats have put on a great convention, they have

started off really well tonight, they've got some great speakers and they're setting it up well. >> we'll see you back here tomorrow at the black fin saloon, come out and visit us. we'll see you tomorrow. wells fe you can never underestimate the power of a conversation. it's this exchange of ideas that helps you move ahead with confidence. so when the conversation turns to your financial goals... turn to us. if you need anything else, let me know. [ female announcer ] wells fargo. together we'll go far. [ construction sounds ] ♪ [ watch ticking ] [ engine revs ] come in. ♪ got the coffee. that was fast. we're outta here.

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